John Middleton did 30 moves his first month in business without spending a dollar on advertising.

In this episode you'll hear how John built Right Handlers Moving in northern New Jersey off word of mouth alone, starting with $12-an-hour Craigslist gigs two decades ago and turning that into a company with over 100 five-star Google reviews. He breaks down the white glove standard that keeps clients calling him back, the exact thing he says to every customer before a job starts, and why he waited seven years before touching marketing at all.

What you'll walk away with:
-The one platform John used to land 30 jobs in month one before anyone knew his name
-Why he tells every client up front, "if we're doing something wrong, let us know," and how that single line builds trust that turns into referrals
-The packing standard he trains his crew on so a client feels like they never moved
-How to think about door hangers, realtor partnerships, and social when you finally do start marketing
-Why John rents from Penske over U-Haul for anything long distance, and the U-Haul problem that pushed him there
-The four-part vision he's building toward: a training facility, his own trucks, a warehouse, and the storage play he ranks number one
-How faith shapes the way he runs the business without ever pressuring a client or a crew member

About the guest: John Middleton is the founder of Right Handlers Moving, a Christian-based moving company in northern New Jersey averaging around 10 moves a month with a three-mover crew. He went from packing trucks off Craigslist at 19 to running a company with 100-plus five-star reviews, almost entirely on referrals.

Timestamps:
00:00 From Craigslist Gigs to Founding Right Handlers
05:21 The White Glove Standard and Paying Attention to Detail
14:00 30 Jobs Month One, and Seven Years With No Marketing
18:31 Embracing Social Media for Marketing Success
24:46 Future Aspirations: Training and Growth

Connect with John and Right Handlers Moving:
Website: https://rhmoving.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rhmoving/
Phone: 844-381-1270

Connect with Heavy Lifting Marketing
Website: https://www.heavyliftingmarketing.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theheavyliftingmarketing/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61571600552571

We work exclusively with moving companies to help you book more jobs. Visit our website to see what that could look like for your company.

By mid-February, Joe Stanio had deferred his mortgage, asked his landlord for slack on the office rent, and had not paid himself in weeks.
Then he bought a $700 snowblower off Facebook Marketplace, called his guys, and posted about it in a local Facebook group. Three days later he had $6,000 in the door. What you will hear in this episode is everything that happened after that, because Joe did not treat the snow money as a one-off. He took it apart, figured out why it worked, and rebuilt his entire business around assets his moving company already had sitting in the yard.

What you will walk away with:
-Why a $700 machine and one Facebook post outperformed anything Joe could have spent on ads that month
-How landscaping became his hiring filter, so an untested guy never walks into a customer's home again
-The reason moving is not an impulse buy, and which services are
-How he cut a $250,000 portable storage setup down to $10,000, then went back and bought a second one
-Why Strong Mile is the only licensed mover in New Jersey that has never owned a box truck
-What sponsoring a semi-pro soccer team actually returns for a local service business
-The skid steer math: one machine, 30 attachments, and how many of those are real revenue lines

About Joe Stanio
Joe founded Strong Mile Movers in Metuchen, New Jersey in 2012 after roughly 14 years in construction installing fire sprinklers, and he has run it for 14 years without ever buying a truck. In the last twelve months he has added portable storage, junk removal, snow removal, handyman work, and Strongmile Mowers, all of it built on the same five star reputation he spent a decade earning.

Connect with Joe Stanio
Website: https://www.strongmilemovers.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GoStrongmile
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/strongmile/

Connect with Heavy Lifting Marketing
Website: https://www.heavyliftingmarketing.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theheavyliftingmarketing/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61571600552571

If your phone goes quiet every January, Joe just handed you the playbook for what to do with the guys you are still paying.

Timestamps
00:00 From fire sprinklers to a moving company
10:23 The worst winter in 14 years
15:45 A $700 snowblower and $6,000 in three days
20:26 Movers to mowers in 90 days
25:37 One reputation, five revenue streams

In this episode, you'll hear how a 39-year-old family moving company in the Lehigh Valley passed from father to son, and why the handover nearly didn't happen. Jarred walks through how he runs a 3-truck, 8-man operation that turns away roughly 300 moves a year on purpose, and why he believes protecting his crew beats chasing volume every time. You'll also get a look inside his rare dual role as both moving company owner and licensed realtor, including the one settlement question that has saved 10 to 15 real estate deals this year alone.

What you'll walk away with:
-Why Jarred turns away 300 jobs a year and still keeps the business profitable
-The unofficial takeover: how he and his mom quietly booked jobs behind his dad's back for nearly a year
-The settlement timeline question every mover should ask before booking a closing day move
-How to spot a nightmare customer from the tone of their first phone call
-The custom builder analogy that justifies premium pricing without apologizing for it
-Why 10-truck operations bleeding $5,000 to $20,000 a month convinced him to stay small

About the guest:
Jarred Cury owns Moving by Cury, a family moving company founded by his parents in 1987, one year shy of its 40th anniversary. He's also a licensed realtor of nearly 10 years, giving him a view of the moving process almost no other owner in the industry has.

Timestamps:
00:00 Booking Jobs Without His Dad Knowing
16:33 The Heart and Soul: A Tribute to Mom
24:19 The Mover Who's Also a Realtor
32:40 Turning Away 300 Moves a Year On Purpose
46:51 "You're Gonna Like Who Walks Through Your Door"

Connect with Jarred Cury
Website https://www.movingbycury.com/
Zillow https://www.zillow.com/profile/Jarred%20J%20Cury

Connect with Heavy Lifting Marketing:
Website: https://www.heavyliftingmarketing.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theheavyliftingmarketing/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61571600552571

If you own a moving company and you're still saying yes to every job that calls, this episode will show you what saying no can build.

Manuel Cardenas did around 1,300 moves in a single year out of a 2012 Chevy Malibu with two dollies and thirty blankets, and that was before Veterans Best Movers even existed.

In this episode you'll hear how an Army flight medic built a San Antonio moving company people trust enough to leave 1,000 five star Google reviews in under 4 years. You'll get the exact estimate process behind those reviews, from room-by-room phone walkthroughs to why he quotes worst case with a two hour window instead of a single number. You'll also hear how one 4.5 star review on a booking platform pushed him to stop renting his reputation and build his own, and how he prices in the 40th percentile while never chasing the cheapest customer. If you run a moving company and want customers who trust you before the truck arrives, this is the playbook.

What you'll walk away with:
-The estimate walkthrough Manuel runs on every sales call: room by room, box counts in brackets, and asking "is this it?" three times so the customer remembers saying yes
-Why he quotes worst case with a two hour window, and how honest quotes protect the review after the move
-The rule that everyone in his office is a mover first, and what that does to close rates and crew trust
-How senior living facilities became 30 to 40% of his clientele through donuts, coffee runs, and donated mariachis
-Why his owned trucks stay local for branding and leased trucks take the long distance wear
-The word of mouth hiring system behind 9 of his 21 guys and near-zero turnover
-What losing his ranking over a single 4.5 star review taught him about owning your reputation

About the guest:
Manuel Cardenas is the founder of Veterans Best Movers in San Antonio, Texas, an Army flight medic who ranked 9th in the country for jobs completed on U-Haul's Moving Help platform in his first full year. Today his company runs six trucks, 21 team members, and just crossed 1,000 five star reviews on Google.

Timestamps:
00:00 1,300 Moves Out of a Chevy Malibu
13:43 Building Veterans Best Movers From Nothing
29:24 The Estimate Process Behind the Reviews
37:32 Movers First: The Team Behind the Trust

Connect with Manuel and Veterans Best Movers:
Website: https://veteransbestmover.com
Google Business Profile: https://share.google/BFdK16JMvxeFMRbe4
Phone: (210) 761-6595
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/veteransbestmovers_/

Connect with Heavy Lifting Marketing:
Website: https://www.heavyliftingmarketing.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theheavyliftingmarketing/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61571600552571

If you're on the fence about whether storage belongs in your business, this episode gives you the real numbers to decide for yourself. Robin Boldt started with zero moving experience and ended up running a company where storage customers guarantee themselves a second job.

What this episode covers
You'll hear how Robin and his business partner Caesar built Express Moving and Storage from a single rented truck into a seven truck operation covering the DMV area. Robin walks through why they put "storage" in the company name before they ever owned a warehouse, and how they used rented self storage units, charged at cost, just to win moving jobs in the early years. You'll get the real pricing behind their current storage model, including what a vault costs and how occupancy runs through the seasons. And you'll hear exactly what he trains his sales reps to ask on every single call, and why it matters more than most movers think.

What you'll walk away with
-The exact reasoning behind offering storage before you have a facility to put it in
-How Express Moving prices their storage vaults, and when they'll discount that price
-Why a storage customer is close to a guaranteed second move down the line
-The one question Robin has his sales reps ask every customer, no exceptions
-How an unrelated auction house relationship became a recurring revenue stream in the early years
-Why Robin stopped chasing growth for its own sake and started focusing on profit margins instead
-What it actually took to find warehouse space big enough for a seven truck fleet

About the guest
Robin Boldt co-founded Express Moving and Storage 13 years ago with business partner Caesar, growing the company to seven trucks, 25 movers, and roughly 100 storage vaults serving the Washington DC, Northern Virginia, and Maryland area. The company runs storage occupancy between 80 and 100 percent and splits its move volume roughly 85 percent local to 15 percent long distance.

Timestamps
00:00 Zero Moving Experience, One Auction House Connection
11:28 Why "Storage" Was in the Name Before They Owned a Warehouse
21:29 The Real Vault Numbers: Pricing, Occupancy, and Discounts
26:35 The One Sales Question That Turns a Move Into Two
34:03 Why They Stopped Chasing Growth and Started Chasing Margin

Connect with Robin Boldt
https://expressmovingandstorageva.com/
https://www.facebook.com/Expressmovingandstorage/
(571)450-9042

Connect with Heavy Lifting Marketing
https://www.heavyliftingmarketing.com/
https://www.instagram.com/theheavyliftingmarketing/
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61571600552571

Gabriel Ventura has been doing flat rate moving since before most companies knew what it was.18 years in business, zero marketing budget, and a tip rate his competitors can't explain.

What This Episode Covers
In this episode you'll hear exactly how Gabriel built Movers on Duty from the ground up on a flat rate pricing model and why he says going hourly was never an option. We get into the real mechanics of how flat rate moving works when things go wrong on move day, how he handles extra items without the conversation turning ugly, and why his pricing strategy is directly responsible for his crew earning more in tips than movers at companies three times his size.

What You'll Walk Away With
-Why flat rate moving removes the adversarial dynamic between you and your client on move day
-How to handle extra items without blowing the agreed price or the relationship
-The 50% realtor discount strategy that turned into 80% of Gabriel's business being B2B referrals
-Why sending bigger crews for shorter jobs makes your moving company more money, not less
-How Gabriel recruits the best movers by watching other companies' trucks in the field
-The exact software he uses to generate accurate flat rate moving quotes online and over the phone
-Why eating early losses built him a moving company that runs entirely on word of mouth 18 years later

This Episode Is For You If:
-You own or operate a moving company and are considering switching to flat rate pricing
-You're tired of customers pushing back on hourly rates and extra charges
-You're looking for real operational insight from someone who has been in the moving industry for over 18 years

About Gabriel
Gabriel Ventura is the founder of Movers on Duty, a Maryland-based moving company built entirely on flat rate pricing and referral growth. He started in the moving industry at 18 as a helper, became a driver within a year, and was in sales within 18 months, before launching his own company and running it for 18 years without a single BBB complaint.

TimeStamps
0:00 The FlatRate Revolution in Moving
11:54 The Unique Niche of Eviction Moving
17:55 Building Relationships with Realtors
24:39 Choosing the Right Truck Rental
30:34 Essential Equipment for Every Mover

Connect with Gabriel
Movers on Duty TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@movers.on.duty.us
Movers on Duty Website: https://moversonduty.com/

Connect with Heavy Lifting Marketing
Are you a moving company owner looking to grow? Heavy Lifting Marketing works exclusively with moving companies across the US. We know the industry because we were in it.

https://www.heavyliftingmarketing.com/
https://www.instagram.com/theheavyliftingmarketing/
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61571600552571

Book a free discovery call: calendly.com/heavyliftingmarketing/discovery-call

#MovingCompany #HeavyLiftingPodcast #FlatRateMoving

Giorgi Battinelli and his partners launched a moving company with no prior business experience. 1,000 moves later, they're running a multi-location operation with 50 employees, all in 12 months.

Giorgi Battinelli (Simply Elite Moving, NJ/PA) breaks down the exact sales process, marketing mix, and team culture that made it happen faster than anyone expected.

What you'll learn:
-How to get your first 100 moves with zero marketing budget
-The sales approach that closes 50% of calls (and how to train your team to do it)
-Google LSA vs. Google Ads, which one actually works for moving companies
-Why Yelp is underrated and how Simply Elite uses it to get higher-intent leads
-How to build a moving company culture that retains great people
-What Giorgi thinks 2026-2028 means for the moving industry

Timestamps:
0:00 How To Get Your First 100 Moves
05:47 Georgian Work Ethic
15:56 Giorgi's Sales Process and Closing Rates
32:47 Google LSA vs. Google Ads
46:06 1,000 Moves in Year One

Connect with Giorgi & Simply Elite Moving:
https://share.google/Lkg60rnTbt7dywAzW
https://simplyelitemoving.com/

Connect with Heavy Lifting Marketing:
https://www.heavyliftingmarketing.com/

#MovingCompany #MovingIndustry #HeavyLiftingPodcast #MovingBusiness #Entrepreneurship #SmallBusiness #MovingCompanyMarketing #StartingABusiness

Roderick Hill didn't plan on being a mover. His mom just needed him off the couch one summer.

That summer job turned into three decades in the moving industry, and eventually ComfortZone Movers in Raleigh, North Carolina.
He has over 100 five-star reviews, two crews on the road, and customers who keep sending him their kids, their siblings, and their parents. In this conversation we get into exactly how he did it and what most movers are completely overlooking.

What You Will Walk Away With:
-Why doing exceptional work on one job is worth more than any lead platform you're paying for
-How Roderick turned a single family into multiple moves purely through trust and word of mouth
-The simple review system he uses at the end of every job that built his Google profile from zero
-Why he has never run a paid ad and what he does instead to stay busy through slow season
-How he thinks about hiring and why he prefers guys with zero experience over seasoned movers
-How he uses Google Gemini to write estimates and market his business without a marketing team
-What his growth plan looks like, more trucks, storage, and eventually a second market

About Roderick Hill
Roderick Hill is the founder of ComfortZone Movers in Raleigh, North Carolina, a five-star rated moving company he built from the ground up over the last five and a half years using nothing but exceptional service and word of mouth. He has been in the moving industry for over three decades, starting as a young mover on a 48-state operation before eventually going out on his own.

TIMESTAMPS
00:00 How a Summer Job Became a 30-Year Career
09:53 The Day He Decided to Go Out on His Own
16:23 How He Built 100+ Five Star Reviews
34:02 What ComfortZone Movers Will Look Like in 5 Years

CONNECT WITH RODERICK HILL
https://comfortzonemover.com/
https://www.facebook.com/p/Comfort-Zone-Movers-100065121604011/

CONNECT WITH HEAVY LIFTING MARKETING
We help moving companies get more calls, more bookings, and more five-star reviews through Google Ads, SEO, and done-for-you marketing systems built exclusively for movers.
https://www.heavyliftingmarketing.com/
https://www.instagram.com/theheavyliftingmarketing/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/105998723/admin/dashboard/
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61571600552571

If you run a moving company and you're still paying for leads that go to five other movers at the same time, this episode is worth your full attention.

Jesse Whitaker has been in the moving industry for 31 years and never ran a single paid ad.

Moxie Movers serves the Richmond metro area with 40 guys and roughly 10 moves a day. Half of that volume comes from repeat customers and referrals. He put his prices on the website before it was common practice, answers phones himself two days a week, and keeps a pool table at the office because he believes the beers-after-work thing is older than any business strategy anyone will ever sell you.
In this conversation you will hear how he built a team people actually stay on, how he spots bad hires before they poison a crew, why he refuses to hire anyone under 25, and what happened when he stepped too far out of his own business.
What you will walk away with:
-Why culture is the first priority, not the last and what it costs you when you treat it as decoration
-A hiring filter Jesse has used for decades: if the crew doesn't like the new guy after two weeks, the new guy goes
-The argument for putting your prices on your website before the customer ever calls
-Why Jesse won't hire someone with moving experience, and what he looks for instead
-How to give employees room to fail without the business falling apart
-What "beers after work" actually does for retention and why trying to control it kills it
-The real reason stepping away from your business requires more oversight, not less

Jesse Whitaker is the founder of Moxie Movers in Richmond, Virginia. He has been in the moving industry for 31 years, starting the week after high school graduation. Moxie Movers runs approximately 300 moves a month with 40 employees, all within a single metro area, with zero paid advertising.

Timestamps:
00:00 From minimum wage to local empire
06:50 The pool table that built his company culture
13:20 His two-week rule for weeding out bad hires
35:05 Why he puts his prices on the website
56:20 300 moves a month with zero paid ads

Connect with Moxie Movers:
https://moxiemovers.com/
https://www.instagram.com/moxie_movers/

Connect with Heavy Lifting Marketing:
https://www.heavyliftingmarketing.com/
https://www.instagram.com/theheavyliftingmarketing/
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61571600552571

If you run a moving company and you have been trying to figure out why good people keep leaving, this one is worth your full attention.

Alexander Surfus was mid-move when his business partner showed up unannounced, high, and threw a punch at him in front of the client. This is the story of how he walked away, started over with $500, and built Surfus Moving into a five-star rated operation in Greenville, South Carolina.

If you own a moving company or you're thinking about starting one, this episode is one of the most honest conversations we've had on the show. No fluff, no highlight reel, just seven years of grinding in the moving industry.

In this episode we cover:
-Starting as a laborer at College Hunks for $10.50 an hour during COVID
-Driving 26-foot trucks through Manhattan with zero training
-The red flags in a business partnership that almost cost him everything
-How he rebuilt from $500 with no truck and no safety net
-Why he chooses Penske over U-Haul
-How he generates all his business through Google Maps with no paid ads
-The chargeback scam that cost him a full move and how to protect yourself
-Why young crews always leave and what to do about it
-Where solo movers go when they're ready to expand to a new market

Timestamps:
00:00 From College Hunks to Long Haul Moving
09:22 The Business Partner Red Flags He Missed
20:53 Running a Solo Moving Company in 2026
25:52 Uhaul vs Penske
40:36 Future Aspirations for Alexander

Connect with Alexander Surfus:
https://www.surfusmovingpros.com/
https://www.facebook.com/surfusmovingpros

Connect with Heavy Lifting Marketing:
heavyliftingmarketing.com
https://www.instagram.com/theheavyliftingmarketing/
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61571600552571

If you found this useful, subscribe and leave a comment, it helps other moving company owners find the show.

#MovingCompany #MovingIndustry #HeavyLiftingPodcast #MovingBusiness #Movers #SmallBusiness #Entrepreneurship #MovingCompanyOwner #HowToStartAMovingCompany #MovingIndustryPodcast